Navy SEAL Dies During Training off Kitsap

A Navy SEAL died Thursday in a training exercise in the waters near Keyport.

Chief Special Warfare Operator Eric F. Shellenberger, 36, was assigned to SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team One at Pearl City, Hawaii. He and other team members were here conducting SEAL delivery-vehicle training, according to Naval Special Warfare Command in Coronado, Calif. During a training dive early Thursday morning, Shellenberger had trouble in the water and signaled for an emergency ascent. He was unconscious when he reached the surface and CPR was administered.

Shellenberger was taken to the Keyport pier, where regional emergency medical technicians continued rescue efforts that were ultimately unsuccessful.

The incident is under investigation.

Shellenberger, of Pennsburg, Pa., enlisted in the Navy on Nov. 30, 1999, after serving more than eight years in the Marine Corps. He graduated from SEAL qualification training in June 2001. He completed more than seven combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and one to Somalia while still a Marine.

Shellenberger is survived by his mother, stepfather, father, two brothers, grandmother, fiancé and extended family.